How A-level results affected these people's success

It's A-level results day. According to reports there have been a record number of university places being offered, however for the fifth year in a row A-level results have fallen.

So what if your teenager hasn't done so well in their A-levels and not made it into university? It's not the end of the world, as these successful people below illustrate.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Benedict Cumberbatch

Getty ImagesAraya Diaz

The Sherlock actor, who has gone on to have a very successful acting career, admitted that he didn't do so well in his A-levels, due to getting distracted: 'There was a lot of pressure on me to achieve an Oxbridge level of brilliance at A-levels,' he said. 'But then adolescence came late and I discovered girls, pot and all sorts of other things…'

Simon Cowell

Getty ImagesJason LaVeris

Heard of him? The chief X Factor judge is now worth millions, with homes all over the world. You would expect someone so famous to have succeeded at school – but the music mogul left after getting a few O-levels and took a job in the mailroom at EMI music. The rest, as they say, is history.

Cheryl Cole

Getty ImagesFoc Kan

The Geordie pop star didn't even take A-levels and left school at 16 with just a few qualifications. She joined girl band Girls Aloud in 2002 and then went on to have a successful solo career. The singer has also had a successful run as a judge on The X factor. She is said to be worth around £20 million.

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below

Richard Branson

Getty ImagesGreg Doherty

One of the world's richest businessmen, Richard didn't take his A-levels. Leaving school at 16, Richard's headmaster said to him that he would either end up in prison or as a millionaire. He now owns many successful companies and even has his own private Caribbean island.

Ben Fogle

Getty ImagesJeff Spier

The adventurer, who travels the world presenting admits that he did ok in his A-levels, but completely failed at the one subject he now specialises in.

'And then came, of course, the big meaty subjects. In no particular order, I got a C in politics, I got a D in economics, and then in geography, which is basically my subject, because I travel around the world, I got a big fat N,' Ben says.

Ben took a year out, which he spent working in an orphanage in Ecuador before going to the University of Portsmouth for a degree in Latin American Studies. After finding fame in reality show Castaway, he's become famous for presenting documentaries on travel and adventure.

Did your teenagers get the results they were expecting? Tell us on Facebook.